Enlargement of the prostate is a really common condition in men who are over 45 years old. You can see this condition most common in aged people. It will cause some diseases, and it will cause you difficulty with urination. It may also compress the urethra, and it will lead to further difficulties. You have to take the proper treatment for this condition if you do not treat this condition. It will lead to many serious diseases like prostate cancer, bladder stones, kidney damage, and urinary tract infection.
When you go to your doctor with this condition, they will ask you some questions concerning your condition. By asking questions, they will evaluate the disease and its treatment. They will check how serious your symptoms are and how early you have to treat this condition. They will also examine how this condition is affecting your daily life. Many tests are present at the hospital, which will solve this enlarged prostate problem or determine how serious this condition is.
Following are some test which will determine the enlarged prostate condition –
- Urine flow study
- Digital rectal exam
- A prostate-specific antigen blood test
- Cystoscopy
- Ultrasound or prostate MRI
What is prostate enlargement?
The prostate is the male reproductive system’s gland, which does the main role in the male reproductive system. This gland commonly looks like walnut. When the ejaculation process starts, the prostate will secrete the fluid through the small tube present in the prostate, leading to the urethra. When the bladder squeezes, it will take the urine out of the urethra. This process is the main function of the prostate gland.
When the man gets older, the prostate gland will become larger, creating difficulty for the urethra. As we know, the position of the prostate gland is exactly at the end of the urethra. This gland will surround the urethra in all regions; therefore, it will create extra pressure on the urethra as prostate glands get bigger. It will also cause you the problem of urination. Difficulties with larger prostate are a problem in urination, increase frequency, urgency in urination, and dribbling. It is a common condition in the man at the age of 45 to 75. It has to decide yet that the cause of these symptoms. Some theories say that this happens because of the hormones changes or testosterone levels.
How is an enlarged prostate diagnosed?
You have to take the treatment concerning these symptoms, which will lead to many severe diseases like urinary tract infection and prostate cancer. If you have to avoid all these severe diseases, you have to treat these symptoms. This symptom will also feature your daily routine in many ways. Many tests are present by which you can diagnose this enlarged prostate. All these tests are different from each other, and it varies from patient to patient. Tests for this condition will choose based on the severity of the patient’s symptoms.
Following are some common test for the diagnosis of an enlarged prostate-
- Symptom check:
In the first step, when you go to your doctor, they will identify your symptoms and check the severity of the symptoms. A checklist of questionnaires is included with the diagnostic process, includes the symptoms like when you are starting to have them or disturbing your daily life. These questions will give a certain idea about symptoms and how terrible are they. Before you are going to your doctor, you had to take a quick recap about your last month’s symptoms. It will help you to explain in detail to your doctor. It will give clarity to your doctor.
After hearing your symptoms, they will first check that your symptoms are from this condition or other health conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, etc. They will also check your lifestyle and confirm that these symptoms are not because of your over-drinking fluids.
- Bladder diary:
Post your symptoms; the doctor will suggest you keep a bladder diary for at least a month. This diary will give your doctor clarity about the cause of this condition. You have to mention every detail in the diary-like how much you drink fluid in a day or what type of drink you take. It will explain the causes of this condition and give details about the treatment for enlarged prostate. You also have to write every detail about your urine amount in a day. This diary has to be in detail.
- Urine test:
The urine test on your body helps your doctors determine the causes of these symptoms. You have to give urine samples for this test. Sometimes they will take more than one urine sample. They will check the urine samples for any infections. Any infection in the urine may give you these symptoms. If your doctor determines any infection in your urine samples, they will give you some coarse antibiotics. This will helps with your infection.
- Blood test:
The blood test can diagnose the enlarged prostate—an evaluation of your blood test to check whether your kidney is working or not. Sometimes doctors will also offer you the prostate-specific antigen test, which includes important protein produced by the cells of the prostate blend in the male reproductive system. It is proved that if the prostate-specific antigen level increases, it will cause you an enlarged prostate, causing you difficulties in your daily life. When you are dealing with an enlarged prostate, it will increase the PSA level in your blood. Many factors will increase the PSA level in your blood, like age, inflammation, and prostate cancer.
- Physical examination:
The preferable tests which are suggested by the doctor, the doctor will examine the abdomen and penis area for the diagnosis of these symptoms. They will also offer you the digital rectal examination in which they will examine your rectum area. From this test, the doctor has clarity about the symptoms, whether it is severe or not. They will check your walls of the prostate from the back of the rectum passage.
Test for diagnosis of an enlarged prostate at the hospital
Some of the above tests are most common in the hospital, but some additional tests are needed to diagnose these symptoms. They also try to find the causes of these conditions. The following are some common tests that are present at the hospital.
- Symptoms questionnaire:
When you go to the hospital to diagnose an enlarged prostate, healthcare professionals will subject you to various questions about your exhibit’s symptoms. You have to describe all these symptoms in detail to the hospital staff. They will note your symptoms and try to find the causes of this condition. This questionnaire is called an international prostate symptom score. It will help to find whether the symptoms are terrible or not.
- Urine flow:
This test is a little different in the hospital. They will ask you to pee into a machine that will measure your speed of urine flow. When a man has enlarged prostate, their urine flows very slowly, or the urine flow speed is low. Before the test, the doctor will suggest you a drink and tell you not to urinate.
- Ultrasound scan:
The scan will tell you the capacity of your bladder or how much your bladder holds the urine. You can also take a scan of your kidneys to check the proper functions.
- Bladder pressure test:
The check includes testing whether your bladder is working properly or not determining the bladder’s pressure. The doctor will pass the thin tube up in your penis to check whether your urethra is clean or not. This thin tube will determine the pressure of your bladder.
Conclusion
All of the above tests are important and necessary to diagnosis the enlarged prostate. You have to take the proper treatment at the time. If you ignore these conditions’ symptoms, it will lead you to severe diseases like prostate cancer. If you want to reduce the symptoms you have, you can go for surgery on your prostate gland. All the above information will give you enough suggestions concerning an enlarged prostate.
This information will make it easy for you to know the advantages and drawbacks of all the tests. It will help you choose the right ones at the right time to detect your health condition perfectly and accurately without any drawbacks present in them; these tests have helped many men in the past and continue to help to do so even in the future.